Free Ascendants of Ancients Sovereign (Worlds of the Crystal Moon, Book 1) by Phillip Jones Page A

you’re right, you big bully. Let’s take it with us. I bet it’s worth something.” He bent over and reached for one of the pieces.
    “Wait,” Sam responded.
    It was too late. George had already grabbed the piece closest to him and separated it from the rest. Before a word of chastisement could be uttered, the other four pieces of the sphere vanished, leaving George holding the remaining piece.
    “Holy crap, man! Did you see that? The damn thing just disappeared. Now what?”
    Shalee grabbed Sam’s arm and moved behind him. She felt the need to do something, but she had no idea what that something was. She could not explain it, but she knew they were in for a ride.
    Sam removed Shalee’s hands, but allowed her to stay behind him. He turned back to George. “Get down from there!”
    Before George could take a step, the statue began to shake. The floor beneath opened, and the base of the statue tumbled into the darkness, taking George with it.
    “George!” Sam shouted as he watched the jerk disappear into the darkness beyond the mouth of the hole. All that was left behind was the bronze man and the wolf, floating in air.
    The fighter paused for only a second before he took action. First, he turned to Shalee and motioned for her to move to the other side of the hall. She went without hesitation, her pink slippers making scuffling noises as she hurried across the floor.
    Second, Sam turned to face the floating remains. The floor had reappeared, and now, both the man and his wolf were made of flesh. “So much for metaphors,” Sam muttered under his breath.
    Having been caught in many stressful situations due to his fighting and medical careers, Sam remained focused, despite Shalee’s screaming in the background. Okay, okay. They’re asleep, he assessed. But they could wake, and what if they’re a threat? A moment later, he made a rash decision. Two against one isn’t fair odds. I should dispose of the wolf first.
    Sam darted across the room, grabbed the wolf by its hind legs, ripped it out of the air, and slammed the beast onto the floor. The animal woke. It tried to bite Sam’s arm, but missed. Sam was forced to let go to avoid its sharp teeth.
    The beast jumped to its feet and prepared to attack.
    Sam’s mind took over, running the scene in slow motion as he prepared for the predator’s next move.
    The wolf charged, leaping at the doctor’s throat.
    Sam stepped to his right. As the beast passed, the fighter used his fist to deliver a crushing right hand to the left side of the wolf’s neck. His four-legged adversary landed and howled as it turned for another attack.
    Sam studied his opponent, his mind searching for weak points. But with all his knowledge, he did not know the creature’s anatomy like he did a man’s. The best way to defeat the wolf would be to get it by the throat and squeeze the life out of it. He grinned and thought, Easier said than done.
    The wolf made three more passes. Each time, Sam managed to avoid the attack and hit the beast on some part of its body. After the fourth pass, Shalee reached down, removed the bunny slipper from her left foot and whipped it across the hall, striking the wolf on the end of its snout.
    The beast turned and gave Shalee an “Oh no you didn’t” look and then growled. It had a new target now.
    Sam tried to regain the creature’s attention, but the wolf was already moving in Shalee’s direction, slowly at first, and then it broke into a run.
    Realizing she was now on the menu, Shalee screamed.
    As the beast passed Sam, the fighter decided it was all or nothing. He took three running steps, calculating the angle where the wolf would be when he landed and then launched into the air.
    Sam landed with all his weight on the creature’s back, pinning it to the floor. The sudden impact caused the wolf’s saliva to flip free from its jowls and arc through the air. It landed with an audible plop on the end of Shalee’s nose.
    The stench was vile. Shalee was